


AO3 Ship Stats 2014

by centreoftheselights



Series: AO3 Ship Stats [4]
Category: No Fandom
Genre: AO3 Statistics, Archived From Tumblr, Archived From centrumlumina Tumblr, Fandom Statistics, Femslash Fandom, Meta Essay, Nonfiction, Racism in fandom, Research, Sexism in Fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-14
Updated: 2014-07-16
Packaged: 2019-09-15 19:22:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16939224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/centreoftheselights/pseuds/centreoftheselights
Summary: Year Two of the AO3 Ship Stats project. This project aims to track and analyse the most popular pairings posted on AO3 over time.





	1. Top 100 List

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted 14th July 2014.

  
  


This is part of the 2014 [AO3 ship stats](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1209645). For a guide to what each column means, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16939224/chapters/39803250).

This list shows the 100 most popular relationship tags on AO3. There are 3 F/F pairings, 23 F/M, 3 Gen and 71 M/M.

Of the 200 names, 29 belong to women - down from 32 [this time last year](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16911123/chapters/39730371). 11 of the 200 names are POC, while 14 are characters of ambiguous race.

[Image Transcription:

New - # - Ship - Fandom - Type - Race - Fics  
 - 1 - Sherlock Holmes/John Watson - Sherlock (TV) - M/M - White - 32111  
 - 2 - Castiel/Dean Winchester - Supernatural - M/M - White - 28851  
 - 3 - Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski - Teen Wolf (TV) - M/M - White - 26793  
 - 4 - Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson - One Direction (Band) - M/M - White - 14632  
 - 5 - Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester - Supernatural - M/M - White - 11074  
 - 6 - Merlin/Arthur Pendragon - Merlin (TV) - M/M - White - 11006  
 - 7 - Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - M/M - White - 9196  
 - 8 - Steve Rogers/Tony Stark - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - M/M - White - 9193  
 - 9 - Sherlock Holmes & John Watson - Sherlock (TV) - Gen - White - 8413  
 - 10 - Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel - Glee - M/M - Amb/Whi - 8250  
 - 11 - Rodney McKay/John Sheppard - Stargate Atlantis - M/M - White - 8106  
 - 12 - Jim Ellison/Blair Sandburg - The Sentinel - M/M - White - 7041  
 - 13 - Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier - X-Men: First Class (2011) - M/M - White - 6472  
 - 14 - Jensen Ackles/Jared Padalecki - Supernatural RPF - M/M - White - 6457  
 - 15 - Clark Kent/Lex Luthor - Smallville - M/M - White - 6120  
 - 16 - Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams - Hawaii Five-0 - M/M - White - 5868  
 - 17 - Clint Barton/Phil Coulson - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - M/M - White - 5840  
 - 18 - Enjolras/Grantaire - Les Misérables - All Media Types - M/M - White - 5504  
 - 19 - James T. Kirk/Spock - Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies) - M/M - White - 5119  
 - 20 - Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones - Torchwood - M/M - White - 5026  
 - 21 - James T. Kirk/Leonard McCoy - Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies) - M/M - White - 4795  
 - 22 - James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers - Captain America (Movies) - M/M - White - 4614  
 - 23 - Allison Argent/Scott McCall - Teen Wolf (TV) - F/M - POC/Whi - 4600  
 - 24 - Harry Potter/Severus Snape - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - M/M - White - 4540  
 - 25 - Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - F/M - White - 4518  
 - 26 - Loki/Thor - Thor (Movies) - M/M - White - 4494  
 - 27 - Zayn Malik/Liam Payne - One Direction (Band) - M/M - POC/Whi - 4462  
 - 28 - Gabriel/Sam Winchester - Supernatural - M/M - White - 4288  
 - 29 - Arthur/Eames (Inception) - Inception (2010) - M/M - White - 4164  
 - 30 - Sirius Black/Remus Lupin - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - M/M - White - 4144  
 - 31 - Pepper Potts/Tony Stark - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - F/M - White - 3876  
 - 32 - Loki/Tony Stark - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - M/M - White - 3782  
*** - 33 - Levi/Eren Yeager - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan - M/M - White - 3598  
 - 34 - Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield - The Hobbit - All Media Types - M/M - White - 3446  
 - 35 - Frank Iero/Gerard Way - My Chemical Romance - M/M - White - 3408  
 - 36 - Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter - Hannibal (TV) - M/M - White - 3217  
 - 37 - Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade - Sherlock (TV) - M/M - White - 3000  
 - 38 - John Egbert/Dave Strider - Homestuck - M/M - Ambig - 2938  
 - 39 - Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich - Shameless (US) - M/M - White - 2930  
 - 40 - Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski - due South - M/M - White - 2839  
 - 41 - Daniel Jackson/Jack O'Neill - Stargate SG-1 - M/M - White - 2805  
 - 42 - Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - F/M - White - 2677  
 - 43 - Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold - Once Upon a Time (TV) - F/M - White - 2614  
 - 44 - James Bond/Q - Skyfall (2012) - M/M - White - 2560  
 - 45 - Mary Morstan/John Watson - Sherlock (TV) - F/M - White - 2535  
 - 46 - Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler - Doctor Who (2005) - F/M - White - 2514  
*** - 47 - Carlos/Cecil Palmer - Welcome to Night Vale - M/M - POC/Amb - 2464  
 - 48 - Eleventh Doctor/River Song - Doctor Who (2005) - F/M - White - 2393  
 - 49 - Niall Horan/Zayn Malik - One Direction (Band) - M/M - POC/Whi - 2386  
 - 50 - Lydia Martin/Jackson Whittemore - Teen Wolf (TV) - F/M - White - 2372  
 - 51 - Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan - Once Upon a Time (TV) - F/F - Amb/Whi - 2359  
 - 52 - Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark - Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins - F/M - Amb/Whi - 2280  
 - 53 - Niall Horan/Harry Styles - One Direction (Band) - M/M - White - 2264  
 - 54 - Spike/Buffy Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - F/M - White - 2232  
*** - 55 - Sherlock Holmes/Molly Hooper - Sherlock (TV) - F/M - White - 2196  
 - 56 - Sebastian Moran/Jim Moriarty - Sherlock (TV) - M/M - White - 2188  
*** - 57 - Marco Bott/Jean Kirstein - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan - M/M - White - 2186  
 - 58 - Sam Carter/Jack O'Neill - Stargate SG-1 - F/M - White - 2185  
 - 59 - Jane Foster/Thor - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - F/M - White - 2158  
 - 60 - Bruce Banner/Tony Stark - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - M/M - White - 2129  
 - 61 - Isaac Lahey/Scott McCall - Teen Wolf (TV) - M/M - POC/Whi - 2060  
 - 62 - Vernon Boyd/Erica Reyes - Teen Wolf (TV) - F/M - POC/Whi - 1995  
 - 63 - Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - F/M - White - 1958  
 - 64 - Dean Winchester & Sam Winchester - Supernatural - Gen - White - 1944  
 - 65 - Adam Lambert/Tommy Ratliff - Adam Lambert (Musician) - M/M - White - 1934  
 - 66 - Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester - Supernatural - F/M - White - 1885  
 - 67 - Rose Lalonde/Kanaya Maryam - Homestuck - F/F - Ambig - 1838  
 - 68 - Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - F/M - White - 1834  
*** - 69 - Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak - Arrow (TV 2012) - F/M - White - 1823  
 - 70 - Anthony DiNozzo/Jethro Gibbs - NCIS - M/M - White - 1693  
*** - 71 - Castiel & Dean Winchester - Supernatural - Gen - White - 1640  
 - 72 - Kris Allen/Adam Lambert - American Idol RPF - M/M - White - 1637  
 - 73 - Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce - Glee - F/F - POC/Whi - 1613  
 - =74 - Brian Kinney/Justin Taylor - Queer as Folk (US) - M/M - White - 1598  
*** - =74 - Gavin Free/Michael Jones - Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF - M/M - White - 1598  
*** - 76 - Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan - Once Upon a Time (TV) - F/M - White - 1551  
 - 77 - Amy Pond/Rory Williams - Doctor Who (2005) - F/M - White - 1528  
 - 78 - Jake English/Dirk Strider - Homestuck - M/M - Ambig - 1523  
 - 79 - Liam Payne/Louis Tomlinson - One Direction (Band) - M/M - White - 1486  
 - 80 - Fíli/Kíli - The Hobbit (Jackson movies) - M/M - White - 1480  
 - 81 - America (Hetalia)/England (Hetalia) - Hetalia: Axis Powers - M/M - White - 1450  
 - 82 - William Bodie/Ray Doyle - The Professionals - M/M - White - 1391  
*** - 83 - Levi/Erwin Smith - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan - M/M - White - 1390  
 - 84 - Castiel/Sam Winchester - Supernatural - M/M - White - 1387  
*** - 85 - Zayn Malik/Harry Styles - One Direction (Band) - M/M - POC/Whi - 1375  
 - 86 - Xander Harris/Spike - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - M/M - White - 1371  
 - =87 - James Potter/Lily Evans Potter - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - F/M - White - 1366  
 - =87 - Remus Lupin/Severus Snape - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - M/M - White - 1366  
 - 89 - Patrick Stump/Pete Wentz - Fall Out Boy - M/M - POC/Whi - 1354  
*** - 90 - Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews - Hockey RPF - M/M - White - 1348  
 - 91 - Dave Strider/Karkat Vantas - Homestuck - M/M - Ambig - 1335  
 - 92 - Spock/Nyota Uhura - Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies) - F/M - POC/Whi - 1330  
 - 93 - Lucifer/Sam Winchester - Supernatural - M/M - White - 1329  
 - 94 - John Egbert/Karkat Vantas - Homestuck - M/M - Ambig - 1328  
*** - 95 - Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski - Teen Wolf (TV) - M/M - White - 1313  
 - 96 - Mike Ross/Harvey Specter - Suits (TV) - M/M - White - 1308  
 - 97 - Greg House/James Wilson - House M.D. - M/M - White - 1281  
*** - 98 - Niall Horan/Liam Payne - One Direction (Band) - M/M - White - 1280  
*** - 99 - Newton Geiszler/Hermann Gottlieb - Pacific Rim (2013) - M/M - White - 1277  
*** - 100 - Scott McCall/Stiles Stilinski - Teen Wolf (TV) - M/M - POC/Whi - 1250]


	2. Femslash List

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A list of the top 50 femslash pairings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally posted 16th July 2014.

  


For comparison purposes, the top 50 F/F relationship tags on AO3 as of July 2014. Since the [overall top 100](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16939224/chapters/39802950) features next to no F/F, I wanted to produce this list to show the discrepancy more clearly.

Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to check every single fandom and pairing down to this level, so I instead relied upon my knowledge of femslash to narrow down what to check. Some pairings might have been missed entirely - the higher up the list you go, the more likely it is to be accurate.

Towards the bottom of the list, fic numbers are so close together that placements will fluctuate on a daily basis, but this gives some idea of the biggest F/F pairings on the site.

[Image Transcription:

# - Pairing - Fandom - Fics  
1 - Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan - Once Upon a Time (TV)  - 2366  
2 - Rose Lalonde/Kanaya Maryam - Homestuck - 1839  
3 - Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce - Glee - 1613  
4 - Rachel Berry/Quinn Fabray - Glee - 1251  
5 - Myka Bering/Helena "H. G." Wells - Warehouse 13 - 945  
6 - Allison Argent/Lydia Martin - Teen Wolf (TV) - 787  
7 - Maura Isles/Jane Rizzoli - Rizzoli & Isles - 647  
8 - Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan - 638  
9 - Tara Maclay/Willow Rosenberg - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - 534  
10 - Gwen/Morgana (Merlin) - Merlin (TV) - 517  
11 - Pepper Potts/Natasha Romanov - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - 494  
12 - Chloe/Beca Mitchell - Pitch Perfect (2012) - 474  
13 - Faith Lehane/Buffy Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - 428  
14 - Anna/Elsa (Frozen) - Frozen (2013) - 416  
15 - Terezi Pyrope/Vriska Serket - Homestuck - 398  
16 - Kahlan Amnell/Cara Mason - Legend of the Seeker - 392  
17 - Quinn Fabray/Santana Lopez - Glee - 385  
18 - Jane Crocker/Roxy Lalonde - Homestuck - 348  
19 - Delphine Cormier/Cosima Niehaus - Orphan Black (TV) - 347  
20 - Miranda Priestly/Andrea Sachs - The Devil Wears Prada (2006) - 346  
21 - Rachel Berry/Santana Lopez - Glee - 340  
22 - Mikasa Ackerman/Annie Leonhart - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan - 315  
23 - Female Shepard/Liara T'Soni - Mass Effect - 309  
24 - Kanaya Maryam/Vriska Serket - Homestuck - 308  
=25 - Jemma Simmons/Skye - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV) - 299  
=25 - Cosette Fauchelevent/Éponine Thénardier - Les Misérables - All Media Types - 299  
27 - Bo/Lauren - Lost Girl - 298  
28 - Sam Carter/Janet Fraiser - Stargate SG-1 - 276  
29 - Arizona Robbins/Calliope "Callie" Torres - Grey's Anatomy - 243  
30 - Alicia Florrick/Kalinda Sharma - The Good Wife (TV) - 230  
31 - Sansa Stark/Margaery Tyrell - Game of Thrones (TV) - 224  
32 - Ashlyn Harris/Ali Krieger - Women's Soccer RPF - 223  
33 - Gabrielle/Xena - Xena: Warrior Princess  - 218  
34 - Jade Harley/Rose Lalonde - Homestuck - 204  
35 - Female Hawke/Isabela - Dragon Age - All Media Types - 201  
36 - Irene Adler/Molly Hooper - Sherlock (TV) - 196  
37 - Princess Bubblegum/Marceline - Adventure Time - 193  
38 - Tobin Heath/Alex Morgan - Women's Soccer RPF - 191  
39 - Aurora/Mulan - Once Upon a Time (TV) - 185  
40 - Luna Lovegood/Ginny Weasley - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - 184  
41 - Korra/Asami Sato - Avatar: Legend of Korra - 178  
42 - Belle/Red Riding Hood | Ruby - Once Upon a Time (TV) - 176  
43 - Hermione Granger/Ginny Weasley - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling - 175  
44 - Willow Rosenberg/Buffy Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - 165  
45 - Anna Milton/Ruby - Supernatural - 160  
46 - Jenny Flint/Madame Vastra - Doctor Who (2005) - 153  
47 - Cora Hale/Lydia Martin - Teen Wolf (TV) - 152  
=48 - Maria Hill/Natasha Romanov - The Avengers (Marvel Movies) - 152  
=48 - Akemi Homura/Kaname Madoka - Puella Magi Madoka Magica - 152  
50 - Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss - Criminal Minds - 151]


	3. Guide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A guide to what each column means.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally posted 14th July 2014.

This post is part of the 2014 [AO3 ship stats](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1209645) and accompanies [this graphic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16939224/chapters/39802950).

The list reflects the status of AO3 on July 13th 2014. AO3 is constantly updating, so the numbers may not relfect the current state of the site.

Every effort has been made to double-check this information, but I’m not personally familiar with all of the fandoms, so there may be some mistakes.

New relationship tags are those which were not part of the top 100 in [last year’s analysis](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16911123/chapters/39731004).

The ship listed is the relationship tag as it appears on AO3. Duplicate tags, which occur occasionally due to the AO3 tag hierarchy, have been removed from this list.

The fandom listed is the fandom tag used most frequently on works with that pairing tag.

The type is the category of pairing the ship falls under: F/F, F/M, Gen or M/M. Relationship tags with an ’&’ indicate platonic relationships and are listed as ‘Gen’.

Race indicates the race of the characters involved. POC indicates a character of colour, White indicates a white character, and Ambig indicates a character of unspecified or ambiguous race, including characters played by POC who are narratively treated as white.

Fics are the number of works using that tag.


End file.
